


Under the Summer Sky

by serenbach



Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bilbo Remains In Erebor, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Bagginshield Summer Surprise Event, Camping, Established Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-31
Updated: 2017-08-31
Packaged: 2018-12-22 07:20:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11962479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/serenbach/pseuds/serenbach
Summary: Bilbo discovers that trying to arrange a walking holiday away from the mountain for him and Thorin is more difficult than he first imagined.Luckily Thorin manages to surprise him.And just maybe, Bilbo will find out what's been bothering him.





	Under the Summer Sky

**Author's Note:**

> I just squeaked in with my entry for the summer surprise entry "sleeping under the open sky seemed like a good idea indeed" from Bilbo's pov.

“I have something I want to discuss with you,” Bilbo said as he wove his way past the petitioners as Thorin’s open court session ended.

He perched on the arm of Thorin’s chair, straightened the map he was carrying with a flourish, and then looked up at Thorin’s face.

He was tense, his brow furrowed, like he was expecting bad news.

Bilbo forgot all about his question and leaned forward, gripping his hand. “Thorin, what’s happened?” he asked, alarmed.

Thorin shook his head and smiled, but Bilbo could tell it was a smile intended to reassure him rather than because he was happy.

“Nothing, _amralime_ ,” Thorin replied, giving his hand a light squeeze in return. “What do you need to tell me?”

Bilbo squinted suspiciously at him, but when he seemed to have no intention of talking about whatever was bothering him, he relented and spread his map over Thorin’s lap.

“As I’m sure you’ve noticed, we’ve been rather busy lately,” Bilbo began, “but we have a brief window of time before summer is over and our autumn tasks begin where we could, if it’s alright with you, take a walking holiday together – just a short one, of course.”

He paused to judge Thorin’s expression when he remained silent. His brow had smoothed out, a small smile touching his lips. “You want to do something together? The two of us?”

Bilbo nodded, ready to expand on his reasons why this was a wonderful idea, when Thorin leaned forward and kissed him, urgently and passionately.

“Was that a yes?” Bilbo asked, slightly wobbly on the arm of the throne, when Thorin pulled away.

“Yes,” Thorin said. “I would very much like to go on a walking holiday with you.”

“Well,” Bilbo said, trying to gather his composure. “That’s alright then.”

\---

Actually managing to leave Erebor proved more difficult than Bilbo imagined.

Firstly, both Fili and Balin, who were to take charge of the Mountain while they were absent, fell ill at the same time, along with many other dwarves in the mountain. It was unusual for dwarves to become ill, but when they did so they tended to be very ill indeed, and for a while neither of them could even consider leaving until this sickness ran its course.

Then when everyone was well again, there was a collapse in a mine shaft, one so bad that it took almost every dwarf in the mountain taking turns to help in the rescue attempt, and left them both worried and exhausted.

Then a delegation from the Iron Hills arrived, and while Thorin was pleased to see them, Bilbo could tell he was feeling frustrated, too.

“Don’t worry about it, love,” Bilbo said to him that night as they dressed for bed. “I’m sure we’ll have another chance, if there are a few fine days in the autumn.”

Thorin shook his head. “Winter comes on fast in the mountains, we probably won’t get a chance.”

“In the spring, then,” Bilbo suggested, but Thorin still looked unhappy.

 ---

Bilbo still struggled with telling the time in the mountain. There was no sunlight to pull him from his sleep, and the cunningly arranged mirrors that spread light throughout the mountain provided little indication of the strength of daylight outside, and when he awoke he was often disorientated. Thorin had developed the habit of leaving a dimly lit lamp in their rooms for when he got up in the mornings.

So while he wasn’t always sure what time it was when he woke, he knew when Thorin gently shook his shoulder one morning that it was very early indeed.

He swatted at him and attempted to curl up and go back to sleep, but Thorin persisted. “Bilbo,” he said softly, stroking the hair out of his eyes. “We need to leave for our walking holiday. Except for the fact we’ll be taking ponies. But we need to get ready to go.”

He cracked open one eye and peered at him. “What?”

“I’ve managed to arrange one free day and night for us out of the mountain – if we leave now we can make the most of it.”

Bilbo started to wake up properly. “You arranged that for us?” he asked, feeling his smile grow.

“For you,” Thorin replied as Bilbo sat up.

“You soppy darling,” Bilbo said, watching as Thorin flushed a ruddy red in the dim light.

Thorin had apparently got all his gear and the ponies ready at some point without him realising it, and they were in the saddle and well on their way from Erebor long before the sunrise. Bilbo dozed on his pony for a little while, a skill he’d learned on their first journey, but revived when Thorin provided some honey cakes and was properly awake by the time the horizon started turning pink.

“So where are we going?” Bilbo asked Thorin. “Should I be in charge of the map?”

Thorin gave him a _look_ , then smiled despite himself. “Just to the river. I’m sure I’ll manage.”

“When did you arrange for all this?” Bilbo asked, still amazed, as he took a deep, satisfied breath. He loved Erebor, he did. But he’d been feeling a little cooped up, both the Baggins and Took parts of him. He’d always gone on a walking holiday every summer back home in the Shire, and he missed it, and he’d been picturing travelling alone with Thorin with a certain amount of pleasure.

“All week with Balin,” Thorin replied. “I’m only sorry I couldn’t get away for longer.”

“I understand, Thorin!” Bilbo protested. “Not that I’m ungrateful, I’m glad we’re here together, but you needn't have worried.”

“I knew that this must be important to you; you so rarely ask for anything for yourself,” Thorin interrupted. “And I’d seen you pouring over maps all week. I must admit, I half expected you to tell me you were planning to go back to the Shire.” Bilbo gaped at him, and Thorin gave him an uncomfortable, apologetic shrug.

“I was also getting ideas for our _honeymoon,_ Thorin,” Bilbo told him pointedly. “Your presence is rather required for that. I’m not planning on going anywhere without you. You are, I’m afraid, stuck with me.”

It was something that had been an issue at the start of their romance. Thorin had brought up Bilbo returning to the Shire so often that Bilbo started to think that he actually wanted him to go, whereas in reality Thorin just had difficulty believing he wanted to stay. Bilbo hadn’t realised it was something he still worried about, but then, he was a champion brooder.

“I…” Thorin started slowly, looking like this time he actually believed what Bilbo was saying, and Bilbo nudged his pony close enough to take his hand.

“It’s a beautiful day,” Bilbo said, “and I have the whole of it to spend with my favourite dwarf. Let’s enjoy it, shall we?”

Thorin kissed his hand before letting it go, and they continued on their way.

\---

When they reached the spot Thorin had decided on for their campsite, they set up the tent that Thorin packed, ate some lunch, sunbathed, swam and fished, and Bilbo felt the sunlight soak into him, and some of tension from the recent stressful events melt away.

That night, after Bilbo fried the fish that he’d caught, and Thorin had very nicely prepared for him, they lay side by side watching the stars come out, one by one.

“It’s almost a shame to go into the tent,” Bilbo said with a sigh of utter contentment.

“You won’t be saying that in the morning when you’re soaked through with dew,” Thorin pointed out with a laugh.

“Even so,” Bilbo replied. He turned his head to look at Thorin. “Thank you for arranging this.”

“It was a good idea,” Thorin told him in a low voice, before he inched closer and kissed Bilbo, a slow, purposeful kiss that made the tent somehow seem very far away.

Suddenly, sleeping – or not sleeping – under the open sky seemed like a good idea indeed. It would be silly to waste their one night away from the mountain, after all.

  


End file.
